CHIWANZA DELIVERS: MHONDORO-MUBAIRA ROAD FINALLY FIXED AS EVEN OPPOSITION SAYS THANK YOU
By Desire Tshuma
HARARE — For years the Mhondoro-Mubaira road was an embarrassment — dusty, potholed and almost impassable. Now graders are on the ground, and even opposition MPs are saying thank you.
Opposition legislator Hon Chalton Hwende, who travelled to his rural home in Mhondoro at the weekend, said he was stunned to find the long-neglected road being rehabilitated.
He said his driver had been telling him that the road he, former MP Mutsa Murombedzi and current Mhondoro MP Hon Chamu Chiwanza had loudly complained about in Parliament and on social media was finally being fixed.
“Yesterday, I was kumusha ku Mhondoro. I decided to go and buy some building materials pa Mubaira. My driver had been telling me that the road that myself and other MPs from Mhondoro, including Mutsa Murombedzi and the current MP, Hon. Chamu Chiwanza, were making noise about in Parliament and Social Media was being fixed,” Hwende said.
Hwende said responsible leadership meant appreciating progress when it happens.
“As a responsible opposition MP, I must, in the same manner that I made noise about the state of the road, also come here today and appreciate the work done by the government through the Minister of Transport, Hon. Mhona, for listening to your fellow MPs and delivering,” he said.
The rehabilitation is being spearheaded by Transport Minister Hon Felix Mhona under the Government’s Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme.
Though the road remains gravel, Hwende said the grading and gravelling is a major improvement from its previous state.
“Even though it is still gravel, we must still appreciate it and say, ‘Thank you.’ Min Mhona, Hon Chamu Chiwanza the area MP and myself, we are ALL MHOFU,” he said.
The Mhondoro-Mubaira road is a critical economic link, connecting farming communities to Mubaira Growth Point and to Harare and Chegutu. It is vital for the movement of farm produce, inputs, building materials and public transport.
For area MP Hon Chamu Chiwanza, the progress is being viewed as a result of sustained lobbying in Parliament and direct engagement with the Transport Ministry.
Residents, who have endured high transport costs and difficulties during the rainy season, now hope the current works will eventually lead to full tarring of the road.
